(Montreal) As soon as he’s back, he’s right back in the fray. Defensive winger Lwal Uguak, repatriated by the Alouettes on Wednesday, will be in the lineup on Saturday, when the Montreal football club visits the Ottawa Rouge et Noirs.
The 6’5″, 271 lb. colossus signed a contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last January, after one season in the CFL. In three preseason games, he made two tackles and a sack, in addition to knocking down a pass.
However, it was not enough to break through the NFL club’s training.
After noticing that there was no opening in the Goodell circuit, the 24-year-old footballer joined the Alouettes (10-2-1), who will try to ensure they play at least one playoff game at home with a victory against the Rouge et Noir (8-4-1).
Uguak was inserted into the lineup as a replacement for Antonio Moultrie on the right side.
After being the seventh overall pick in the 2023 draft, Edmonton’s Uguak played every game for the Alouettes last season, recording 16 tackles and three sacks, along with a forced fumble. He added 11 tackles and three pass breakups in three playoff games.
The arrival of Uguak, however, means that Quebecer Philippe Lemieux-Cardinal, who played his first CFL game last week, is relegated to the practice squad.
Head coach Jason Maas made just one other change to his lineup, as Lorenzo Burns was inserted in place of linebacker Titus Wall.
“They’re playing extremely well and are still undefeated at home,” Maas said of the Redblacks, 6-0-1 at TD Place. “We all want to be perfect at home at the start of the season, but to still be perfect at this point in the year is another story.”
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Jason Maas
They are tough to play against and have found ways to win games they didn’t win last year. They play well in all three phases of the game. It’s no coincidence that this game will be between the top two teams in the East.
Jason Maas, head coach of the Montreal Alouettes
“This game is all the more important because it could allow us to have the tiebreaker against Ottawa, even if we still have one game left against them,” noted quarterback Cody Fajardo.
“Their acquisitions last winter allowed them to take this step to become a competitive team. They also kept their core of players and above all, did not press the panic button,” added Fajardo. […] Their defense has been playing very well for the last few games and I think that’s why they’ve been so successful.
“They’re one of the best defenses in the league and we’re going to have our hands full. When we get inside their 20-yard line, we’re going to have to score touchdowns because field goals aren’t going to be enough.”
Kick-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday.